Beethoven: Sparks of Joy – Four hands are better than two, Op. 6 piano sonata With an opening theme that resembles the Fifth Symphony, Beethoven’s Opus 6 sonata for piano four hands is a rarely heard gem. Due to its brevity and relative ease of execution, it’s generally thought of as a work for piano […]

Beethoven: Sparks of Joy — Three nations on Mars; Beethoven’s triple concerto. The space agencies of three different countries – the United States, China, and the United Arab Emirates – have successfully arrived at Mars and begun a promising collaboration for the advancement of human knowledge and power. In that spirit, we have today’s selection: Beethoven’s […]

Beethoven: Sparks of Joy — the master’s climactic Op. 111 finishes his use of the sonata form. Although Beethoven would go on to compose other works for solo piano, the Opus 111 is Beethoven’s climactic finish to the sonata form. With the first movement, he reduces the C minor key to its bare elements (think […]

Beethoven: Sparks of Joy — Opus 110 well-known, presents a gamut of settings, much like a great drama. Opus 110 is the most popular of Beethoven’s late sonatas. The opening is lyrical and warm, and is followed by an exuberant Scherzo, whose themes were borrowed from two folk tunes – “Unsa Kätz häd Katzln ghab” […]

Beethoven: Sparks of Joy — Op. 109 is the predecessor to the Hammerklavier. The Opus 109 sonata is a much smaller work than its immediate predecessor, the “Hammerklavier”. It has a fantasy-like first movement followed by a quick prestissimo, and the whole is capped with a marvelous theme and variations, which Beethoven instructed was to […]

Beethoven: Sparks of Joy — Op. 106, “Hammerklavier,” enfolds soul-wrenching drive with those unknown last moments of a Mars landing. The Opus 106 “Hammerklavier”, Beethoven’s 29th sonata, is one of the most demanding works in the entire keyboard repertoire. Magnificent in scope, enormous in length, it contains a soul-wrenching Adagio movement and ends with an […]

Beethoven: Sparks of Joy – Op. 101 begins his “late period” sonatas. The Opus 101 is generally regarded as the first of the “late period” sonatas, in which Beethoven takes advantage of the expanded range  and sturdier construction of the “Hammerklavier” to produce works of extraordinary power and richness of effect. In fact, in the […]

Beethoven’s sonata Op. 90 follows Napoleon’s defeat. Five years would lapse before another piano sonata appeared since Napoleon’s storming of Vienna. During these years, Beethoven composed his Mass in C, and organized a successful revival of his opera, now called “Fidelio”.The Opus 90 sonata was composed following the defeat of Napoleon and during the preparations […]

Beethoven’s rebuke of Napoleonic forces; a sonata for Archduke Rudolph. Napoleon’s forces approached Vienna in April of 1809, forcing the nobility to flee to their country estates, and Beethoven to shelter in his brother’s cellar, with pillows strapped over his ears to preserve what little hearing he still had. The departure of his friend and patron, […]